{"version":"1.1.0","producer":"fm.getcarcurious","layer":"official","episode":{"title":"Changing Lanes","url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/changing-lanes","audioUrl":"https://pdst.fm/e/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/waroncars/TWOC-2026-06-09-E174-Changing_Lanes-GENERAL.mp3?dest-id=807818","description":"What does it take to make a street safer for everyone? In the US, it typically requires a combination of tragedy, grassroots organizing, and political leadership. Even when these ingredients come together, success is never guaranteed, as so many projects become battles about more than just bike lanes. Changing Lanes, a new documentary from director Ben Wolf, covers the fight to make McGuinness Boulevard in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, safer following the tragic death of a beloved teacher at the hands of a hit-and-run driver. Featuring interviews with such notable figures as Janette Sadik-Khan and former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, Changing Lanes moves beyond bike lanes to tell a story that's very much made for this political and cultural moment. Wolf joins us along with advocates Bronwyn Breitner and Kevin LaCherra, as well as New York State Assemblymember Emily Gallagher, to talk about how they fought to make McGuinness safe and the broader lessons they learned along the way. ***Join The War on Cars on Patreon and listen to ad-free versions of regular episodes, Patreon-only bonus content,  invitations to live events, merch discounts and free stickers!*** SHOW NOTES: Stream Changing Lanes on  Amazon or Kanopy. Watch the film's trailer. Learn more about the film and request a screening at ChangingLanesDoc.com. Read more about the Make McGuinness Safe campaign and learn about  where the project stands today.  Catch up on the corruption that led to a powerful family's downfall and the indictment of a top aide to Mayor Eric Adams,  via Streetsblog. Order our book,  Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves from the Tyranny of the Automobile, out now from Thesis, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Buy a certified, pre-owned e-bike from  Upway and save $100 off any purchase of $800 or more with code TWOC100. Visit  Upway.co to get rolling. Thanks also to Cleverhood. Listen to this episode for the latest discount code and get 15% off the best rain gear for walking and cycling. TheWarOnCars.org"},"annotations":[{"id":407534,"startTime":1081.26,"endTime":1085.86,"type":"car","title":"Oldsmobile Intrigue","url":"/cars/oldsmobile/intrigue","image":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/%2798-%2702_Oldsmobile_Intrigue.jpg","quote":"...tarts to get a little more, there's a little more intrigue, let's say, introduced into the film. And we kind...","canonicalId":"car:oldsmobile:intrigue","priority":0.5,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Oldsmobile Intrigue is a mid-size sedan that was produced by Oldsmobile. It’s often discussed as part of the brand’s lineup and as a representative of older American sedan design and engineering. In a podcast, it may come up in a narrative or historical context rather than as a current mainstream choice.","simplifiedExplanation":"The Oldsmobile Intrigue is a mid-size car that was made by Oldsmobile. It’s the kind of vehicle people used for everyday driving like commuting and family trips. It may be mentioned because it’s an older model from a brand that’s no longer producing cars.","imageAttribution":"Bull-Doser (Public domain)","imageLicense":"Public domain","imageSourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:'98-'02_Oldsmobile_Intrigue.jpg"}},{"id":407535,"startTime":1652.1,"endTime":1656.6,"type":"term","title":"road diet","url":"/glossary/road-diet","quote":"when they said a road diet on McInnis, that's nuts. I genuinely was like, you can't do that.","canonicalId":"term:road-diet","priority":0.55,"confidence":0.9,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"A road diet is a traffic-engineering change that typically reduces the number of travel lanes (or lane width) and reallocates that space to other uses like bike lanes, turn lanes, or safer crossings. The goal is usually to slow vehicles and improve safety, but it can be controversial because it may reduce roadway capacity for cars.","simplifiedExplanation":"A road diet is when a road is redesigned to take away some space from regular driving lanes. That space is often used for things like bike lanes or safer crossings, which can make traffic feel slower or less convenient for cars."}},{"id":407536,"startTime":1694.7,"endTime":1751.0,"type":"term","title":"DOT","url":"/glossary/dot","quote":"there's this real disconnect between what DOT is presenting at these meetings and the screaming and the yelling that's happening in person on the streets or on Zoom","canonicalId":"term:dot","priority":0.4,"confidence":0.85,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"DOT usually refers to a city or state Department of Transportation, the agency responsible for planning and managing roads, traffic signals, and safety projects. In this context, the speaker contrasts what DOT proposes at public meetings with what residents experience and what they ultimately support.","simplifiedExplanation":"DOT is the government agency that handles transportation—like roads and traffic planning. Here, the speaker is saying DOT’s plans don’t always match what people want or what happens on the ground."}},{"id":407537,"startTime":1716.0,"endTime":1723.5,"type":"place","title":"Meeker Avenue","url":"/glossary/meeker-avenue","quote":"but I think also the changes that happened with Meeker Avenue, I think, were a real catalyst as well because when I was a street safety advocate before I was an elected official,","canonicalId":"place:meeker-avenue","priority":0.25,"confidence":0.9,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"Meeker Avenue is a specific roadway where the speaker says changes were made that affected street safety and access. Because it’s discussed as the location of bike-lane and parking changes, it functions like a case study street in the broader debate.","simplifiedExplanation":"Meeker Avenue is a particular street where the redesign happened. The speaker uses it as an example of how changes to lanes and parking affected local people."}},{"id":407538,"startTime":1751.0,"endTime":1760.9,"type":"term","title":"bike lane","url":"/glossary/bike-lane","quote":"Under Meeker Avenue, we advocated for a bike lane to be protected and also enclosed bike lane, and they removed a lot of parking that had been free,","canonicalId":"term:bike-lane","priority":0.6,"confidence":0.85,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"A bike lane is a dedicated strip of roadway marked for bicycles, intended to separate cyclists from faster car traffic. In safety-focused redesigns, bike lanes can be further upgraded with physical protection (like barriers) to reduce conflicts and improve rider safety.","simplifiedExplanation":"A bike lane is a part of the road reserved for bicycles. It helps keep bikes separated from cars, which can make riding safer."}},{"id":407539,"startTime":1763.0,"endTime":1767.6,"type":"term","title":"paid parking","url":"/glossary/paid-parking","quote":"and they removed a lot of parking that had been free, and then they put paid parking under there.","canonicalId":"term:paid-parking","priority":0.35,"confidence":0.75,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"Paid parking refers to parking spaces where drivers must pay a fee to park, often via meters or permits. In street redesigns, converting free parking to paid parking is commonly used to manage demand and fund changes, but it can also affect local access and perceptions of fairness."}},{"id":407540,"startTime":1773.8,"endTime":1783.4,"type":"place","title":"MTA Transit","url":"/glossary/mta-transit","quote":"A lot of the people who were living in Eastern Green Point, in Green Point, you end up going from very centrally located on MTA Transit to basically not having real access to MTA Transit without a 25-minute walk.","canonicalId":"place:mta-transit","priority":0.2,"confidence":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"MTA Transit refers to public transit operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which runs subways and buses in the New York City area. The speaker is describing how the street changes affected how easily residents can reach MTA services on foot.","simplifiedExplanation":"MTA Transit is the public transportation system in the New York area. The speaker is saying that after the changes, some people had a much longer walk to reach it."}},{"id":407541,"startTime":1928.44,"endTime":1935.98,"type":"car","title":"Honda Civic","url":"/cars/honda/civic","image":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/2017_Honda_Civic_Type_R_FK8_in_Championship_White%2C_front_right%2C_08-04-2024.jpg","quote":"...e open streets and just this tremendous growth of civic action when a lot of these people, kind of the fo...","canonicalId":"car:honda:civic","priority":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Honda Civic is a compact car known for being practical, efficient, and widely used as a daily driver. It’s often discussed because it has a long-running reputation and a large owner community, which can make it a frequent topic in conversations about everyday driving and car culture. In a podcast, it may come up when talking about how common and accessible certain cars are to many people.","simplifiedExplanation":"The Honda Civic is a small, everyday car made by Honda. People choose it because it’s usually efficient and easy to live with for commuting and errands. It may be mentioned because it’s a very common car on the road.","imageAttribution":"Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0","imageLicense":"CC BY-SA 4.0","imageSourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2017_Honda_Civic_Type_R_FK8_in_Championship_White,_front_right,_08-04-2024.jpg"}},{"id":407542,"startTime":2238.1,"endTime":2243.1,"type":"term","title":"cut through traffic","url":"/glossary/cut-through-traffic","quote":"This plan was such a good compromise for the neighborhood. You keep parking, you keep the travel lanes, you eliminate a lot of cut through traffic and you get protected bike lanes.","canonicalId":"term:cut-through-traffic","priority":0.55,"confidence":0.9,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Cut through traffic” is when drivers use smaller side streets to bypass congestion on main roads. It’s often a problem in neighborhoods because it increases traffic volume and speeds on streets that weren’t designed for it.","simplifiedExplanation":"Cut-through traffic is when drivers use back streets to avoid the main road. It can make neighborhood streets busier and less safe."}},{"id":407543,"startTime":2240.0,"endTime":2243.1,"type":"term","title":"travel lanes","url":"/glossary/travel-lanes","quote":"You keep parking, you keep the travel lanes, you eliminate a lot of cut through traffic and you get protected bike lanes.","canonicalId":"term:travel-lanes","priority":0.5,"confidence":0.75,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Travel lanes” are the lanes intended for regular vehicle movement along a road. In traffic planning, changing how many travel lanes exist (or removing one) can shift where cars go and how congested nearby routes become.","simplifiedExplanation":"Travel lanes are the main lanes cars use to drive along a road. If you reduce them, drivers often reroute and traffic can build up elsewhere."}},{"id":407544,"startTime":2255.4,"endTime":2261.2,"type":"concept","title":"traffic flows if you compare it to water, to oil, to anything other","url":"/glossary/traffic-flows-if-you-compare-it-to-water-to-oil-to-anything-other","quote":"You know, traffic flows if you compare it to water, to oil, to anything other. If you plug one way and don't provide an alternative, so the other ways are going to get more congested.","canonicalId":"concept:traffic-flows-if-you-compare-it-to-water-to-oil-to-anything-other","priority":0.45,"confidence":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The speaker is describing a traffic-flow idea: if you block one route without offering an alternative, demand redistributes and congestion increases elsewhere. It’s an analogy for how road capacity changes can “push” traffic onto other streets.","simplifiedExplanation":"They’re using an analogy to say traffic doesn’t disappear—it gets redirected. If you close one path and don’t give drivers another good option, other roads can get more crowded."}},{"id":407545,"startTime":2292.9,"endTime":2297.9,"type":"term","title":"Department of Transportation","quote":"If our calculation and the Department of Transportation's calculation is wrong, which I don't believe that it is, but if it is then you know.","canonicalId":"term:department-of-transportation","priority":0.4,"confidence":0.6,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Department of Transportation (DOT) is the government agency responsible for transportation policy, planning, and infrastructure oversight. In road-lane changes, DOT often provides traffic modeling and safety/impact analysis that influences decisions."}},{"id":407546,"startTime":2510.24,"endTime":2514.98,"type":"car","title":"Toyota A90","url":"/cars/toyota/supra","image":"https://toyota-cms-media.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2025_GRSupra_30_Premium_MT_StratosphereBlue028.jpg","quote":"advantage, that aren't patronizing a business or driving their kids home from school, but literally taking a 90 second shortcut to avoid using the interchange. And really for the first two years of this campaign, having that consistent presence, there's another amazing advocate in our neighborhood,","canonicalId":"car:toyota:supra","priority":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Toyota Supra is a performance sports car designed for quick acceleration and confident handling. It’s significant because it’s a recognizable nameplate that people associate with driving excitement rather than everyday practicality. A podcast might mention it when discussing performance driving, shortcuts, or how certain cars fit specific driving scenarios.","simplifiedExplanation":"The Toyota Supra is a sports car from Toyota. It’s built to be fast and fun to drive, especially when you want strong acceleration. It’s usually discussed as a performance-focused car rather than a family commuter.","imageAttribution":"Toyota Motor North America press media","imageSourceUrl":"https://pressroom.toyota.com/vehicle/2025-toyota-gr-supra/"}}],"speakers":[{"id":"s1","name":"Doug Gordon","role":"host"},{"id":"s2","name":"Sarah Goodyear","role":"host"}],"transcripts":[{"url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/changing-lanes/transcript.vtt","type":"text/vtt"}]}